EVENTS: All-Toyotafest 2017, Part 03 — Fun to Drive

“Fun to Drive” was the tagline of Toyota Japan for much of the 1980s, and it was absolutely true. Toyota once had a whole portfolio of stylish, slingable cars that were also — and this is a key component of fun — affordable. Thanks to the new venue for Toyotafest this year, there was even more space to welcome greater numbers of these delightful machines.

The model that personified the fun-to-drive ethos for the longest run in Toyota’s history was the Celica. Whether a Japan-inspired coupe like Boggie Dizon’s ’72, stock survivor liftback like Mike Malnick’s ’77, or the nisei style street machines of Jeff Yee and Brian Karasawa (lead photo), there are countless interpretations for just the first generation alone.

John Garza’s ’77 takes a different tack, a Lexus in Celica’s clothing. Beneath the flawless exterior was a Lexus 2JZ-GE inline-six, matched with gorgeous Lexus Glacier Frost Mica paint. If John’s car looks familiar, that’s because it’s also a Touge California survivor.

Even after a layout change from rear- to front-wheel drive, the Celica managed to retain its place as an enjoyable and handsome coupe with a devoted following. We found a brilliant ST162 droptop looking 80s-tastic, a perfect LA cruiser.

Nearby was an ST184 owner with a good sense of humor.

There’s something inherently fun in driving a 50 year old car that can keep up with modern traffic. A barikan Corona like Judith Mendoza’s is the oldest Toyota design that doesn’t feel like a holdover from a more primitive age.

You can even use it as a daily driver, as Oscar Leclere does with his ’67. Though he’s owned it for just 10 years, he even has the original Fujitsu Ten radio service booklet and instruction manual, along with a logbook detailing mileages and fill-ups.

Perhaps the only hairy aspect are the brakes, but Edgardo Pelayo and Robert Medina somehow discovered that first-gen Acura Legend brakes could be swapped into their 1969 sedans.

Overall, T40-generation Coronas were well represented, but Josh Segovia had the only coupe. It was in fact a rare 1969 1900 Deluxe hardtop coupe with a factory 4-speed, rescued from a wrecking yard.

A car that gets almost no love is the T80-series Corona sedan, but we were happy to see one represented. Daniel Acosta’s 1971 RT83 is a beautiful specimen, looking sharp lowered on original SSR Star Sharks.

Few forms of automobile embody driving fun better than the hot hatch, and Toyota had its entry as well. However, the Starlet stood out as one of the few front-engined, rear-wheel-drive examples of the breed. What was considered outdated technology back then is a coveted premium today. Slap on some Riverside 3-spokes and you’re golden.

Let’s also not forget that Toyota is one of the few manufacturers to build an honest-to-god mid-engined sports car that you didn’t need to embezzle money to enjoy. We’ve seen strong turnouts from the MR2 contingent at previous T-fests, but this year the congregation was truly astounding.

Rows and and rows of them came, from as far away as Canada. Interestingly, the trend of 90s-era snorkels and over-vented body kits is long gone. Even if performance modded with a turbo upgrade and suspension work like Chad Vyse’s 1993 Turbo, most owners chose to keep the look to a subtle body kit and/or a set of tasteful wheels, like Chad’s TOM’s C7Rs.

It was impossible to photograph them all, but here are some of our favorites, starting with a British Columbian SW20 on Work Meisters and a tasteful nod to vintage Toyota racing livery.

RJ Panlilio’s 1993 was an homage to the TRD parts catalog. Everything from 17-inch Alumi-K wheels to the sparkplug wires came from Toyota Racing Development.

Brent Litjen’s Signal Yellow 1993 was gorgeous in its originality. It makes us happy to know that at least one example in a coveted, rare color exists unmolested in the world. Brent even has the window sticker, showing that the car was sold for $27,406 out the door.

MR2 presence extended to AW11s as well, with notable examples like Ray Sebastian’s 1989 Supercharged on Work Meister CR01s.

From 1988-89, the last two years of AW11 production Toyota offered only one two-tone color option, Super Silver over Gray. Unlike earlier two-tones where colors were simply divided into upper and lower halves, this colorway was more complex, with a thin band of the secondary color running through the center section, across the nose, and over the rear deck. This example is actually the only one we’ve seen in person.

We end with a brilliantly 80s example made complete by a set of rare TOM’s Racing Vesta wheels. The aero style that was so popular in the 80s is the perfect complement to the MR2 wedge, as the red lettering is to Toyota’s trademark 3E5 Super Red paint.

It’s fashionable to bash Toyota for making commuter cars, but we challenge the naysayers to drive any one of the cars shown here and not leave with a smile on their face. We couldn’t stop grinning, and we didn’t even get a turn behind the wheel.

16 Responses to EVENTS: All-Toyotafest 2017, Part 03 — Fun to Drive

Mark Newton-Johnsaid:

Now I’m waiting for the Corolla section. I couldn’t make it this year, but I always headed to the Corollas first, as I still have the TE27 SR-5 that my dad bought new. I see a ton of nisemono Levins, Truenos, and SR-5s, but that one red 1974 SR-5 from a few years ago still gets me, because it was, and still is, perfect. And since I’ve had mine since it was new, I know what is correct, and what isn’t.
Someday, I would like to restore my car and drive it to Toyotafest.

Thanks for the props on my 87 ST162 convertible. This was our first All-Toyotafest and we loved the event. The car is 100% functional including the cassette player. We were putting the new suspension modifications to the test on highway 33 outside Ojai 2 days after the show and 4 of the MR2’s pictured here were going out as we came in. Hardcore 80’s flashback. Cheers!

Thanks, it was awesome to see a 4th gen Celica vert too! It’s been a long time since I’ve seen one. We usually leave town on the Monday afterwards, by way of a scenic tour through the Malibu canyons and a stop for lunch at Neptune’s Net to recite our favourite Fast & Furious quotes.

Ben…dude…you posted those MR2s like pornography. The groups of SW noses, then the white SW20s looking sexier and sexier and then bam, the AW11s. I have an unhealthy MR2 obsession as it is and you aren’t helping. At least you left out the ZZWs… because those are the most imminent threat to my financial security. …but all the MR2s call to me….whyyyyy

I keep hearing about this event now I definitely have a reason to make a road trip. I just bought me a ’92 Celica GT which at its current state is in need of some work, but its still strong. I’ve always been a Celica fan and now that I’m a Celica owner, I feel the need to check out the thread that binds other Toyota owners together. 2018 or 2019 I’ll be there and that’s my promise.